Founding Attorney

Attorney Phylicia M. Powers is a native of Duplin County, NC. She was raised in Mystic, CT, and is a 1998 graduate of The Williams School. She obtained a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Maryland at College Park in 2002 with a concentration in Criminology/Criminal Justice and African American Studies. Upon matriculation from her baccalaureate studies, she worked as a middle grades teacher in Duplin County, North Carolina, as well as with the Community Boys and Girls Club of Wilmington, NC. In 2011, Phylicia received her Juris Doctor from North Carolina Central University School of Law and passed the 2011 North Carolina Bar Examination. While in law school, Phylicia competed in several intra and inter school trial competitions.

Prior to becoming a private attorney in August of 2019, Attorney Powers was employed as an Assistant Public Defender for the 14th Judicial District in Durham, North Carolina for eight years. As an attorney, Phylicia has experience in juvenile and adult criminal defense. She has successfully negotiated and litigated misdemeanors, as well as serious/violent felonies

including assaults, robberies, drug trafficking, sex offenses, and homicides. As a proud Legal Eagle, Attorney Powers has served her alma mater as a guest speaker for criminal defense, juvenile law, and School to Prison Pipeline panel discussions. Additionally, she has served as a guest judge for trial advocacy classes, as well as intra school competitions. She serves upon request, as an Adjunct Professor at NCCU School of Law. At NCCU School of Law, she assists second-and third-year law students who compete in a regional American Association for Justice (AAJ) trial competition, as well as teaches: Criminal Law, Professional Responsibility, Trial Practice and Bar Readiness courses. She taught for three years at Strayer University’s

Greensboro and Raleigh campuses, where she facilities lectures in areas of study, such as Business Law; Law, Ethics and Corporate Governance, and; Critical Thinking. Attorney Powers was initiated into the Kappa Phi Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Incorporated in the Fall of 2000. As a second-generation Delta, she has served the South Atlantic region, as an elected official, as well as chairwoman for various committees in the Wilmington and Duplin County Alumnae chapters.

Areas Of Practice

• Criminal Defense

• Drug Crimes

• Sex Offenses

Bar Admissions

• North Carolina, 2011

Education

• North Carolina Central University School of Law, Durham, North Carolina

  • J.D. – 2011

• The University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland

  • B.A. – 2002

  • Major: Criminology/Criminal Justice and African American Studies

Classes/Seminars

• Trial Advocacy/ AAJ Trial Team Coach, NCCU School of Law, 2019 – Present

• Juvenile Defender Conference-Presenter, UNC- School of Government

• Ethics and the Law, Strayer University, 2018 – Present

• Law Ethics and Corporate Governance, Strayer University, 2018 – Present

• Business Law, Strayer University, 2018 – Present

Honors and Awards

• Top 100 Lawyers for National Black Lawyers’ Association

Professional Associations and Memberships

• National Black Lawyer’s Association, Member, 2020 – Present

• North Carolina Bar Association, Member, 2011 – Present

Past Employment

• 14th Judicial District Office of Public Defender, Durham, NC, Assistant Public Defender, 2011 – 2019

• North Carolina Freedom Monument Project, Carrboro, NC, Intern

• Community Boys & Girls Club, Wilmington, NC, VP Programs, Growth & Development

• Charity Middle School, Rose Hill, NC, Teacher

Fraternities/Sororities

• Delta Sigma Theta